Chrome OS Getting New Wallpaper Picker: First Look

Other than new education-focused Chromebooks, we’re clearly in a bit of a lull when it comes to new Chrome OS hardware for consumers. We know there are very, very interesting devices on the near horizon, but it will likely be a few months at least before we see any of these products come into the light.

But fear not, for Chrome OS development is moving forward at break-neck speeds with new features and functions appearing every couple days. We’re watching our favorite OS grow up, gain abilities, and simply get more polish than its ever had before.

Today is no different with some official eyes-on of Chrome OS’ new wallpaper picker. The one we currently have is dated, old, and in need of an overhaul. The included wallpapers haven’t changed in ages and the interface looks like it belongs in Chrome OS 30, not Chrome OS 64.

What We Know

First off, this is available in Canary right now with a flag: chrome://flags/#enable-new-wallpaper-picker

All the usual caveats about Canary apply, so do this with caution. Honestly, for something as pedestrian as a wallpaper picker, I’d just wait it out. It’ll be in Stable soon enough.

The new picker looks to pull a few pages out of the wallpaper picker on newer Android phones that initially shipped on the Pixel and Pixel XL. There are plenty of categories, a daily refresh option, and some info on each photo for you to explore a bit if you so choose.

It also looks like most of the choices are similar to the Pixel wallpapers, too, so that means we should see a nice selection at first and will likely see that collection grow over time with more interesting wallpapers added on the regular.

Sure, this is a simple change and, sure, it doesn’t make a massive difference in your daily workflow. What it does, however, is continue to move the OS forward into a place of cohesion. As we see the kinks get ironed out for tablet mode and Android apps, along with the possibility of some Linux containers, Chrome OS is coming along as a formidable operating system that can stand toe-to-toe with anything a user demands of it. We still have some hurdles to get through, but Chrome OS is growing up and we’re excited about it.

About Robby Payne

Tech junkie. Musician. Web Developer. Coffee Snob. Huge fan of the Google things. Founded Chrome Unboxed because so many of my passions collide in this space. I like that. I want to share that. I hope you enjoy it too.